Calle del Cromo

Chromium is a hard, silvery metal that protects steel from rust and turns the ruby red and the emerald green. Its name comes from the Greek chroma, color, for the vivid tones of its compounds. Here, in southeastern Legazpi, it names a street within a set christened with metals and minerals: a few steps away run la calle del Plomo, la calle del Zinc, la calle del Hierro, la calle del Bronce and la calle del Rodio. The neighborhood came to be nicknamed the Metals District. This strip was bounded by the railway lines and given over to industry. For decades it was a land of factories and workshops under the shelter of the Delicias station. Once the sheds closed, the district filled with blocks of flats and parks. Anyone strolling today between the Zinc and the Plomo walks over an old map of metals that almost no one smelts anymore.